Orihime and Ulquiorra were sitting in the chairs that originally belonged to the Espada.
She looked at him with a hint of sadness, since his expression was still melancholic.
"Knowing him... He probably wasn't happy to be revived" She thought while her eyes seemed to devour him.
"What is it, Inoue?" He asked a bit troubled by the look in her eyes.
"Ah! Sorry... I was just..."
"If you're wondering about my expression... It's correct, I'm not entirely pleased with the current situation"
"Why is that?"
"Although I wanted to see you to understand the heart to a greater extent, the Oni were the ones who ordered me to bring you to this place"
"So that part was true after all..."
"Unfortunately, yes. Even worse than that, is the fact that they didn't tell me exactly what they wanted from you... Though I can imagine that it has something to do with your special power"
"But I... I don't want to help them!" She replied angrily. "I know that they only want to cause pain and suffering... And my friends are trying to stop them! Why would I do such thing?!"
"I understand how stupid you might think it is considering you wouldn't want to cooperate, but they must have thought of something to force you to comply. But don't worry, whatever it is they're planning, I have a scheme of my own to counter them" Ulquiorra revealed.
"They can't spy on you, can they?" She asked, worried that the Demons discovered that he was telling her all this.
"Probably they can, but they haven't done such thing. My senses are as sharp as they have ever been, so any source of Reiatsu, for little they are, would be easily identified. Even the source of the power of the Oni is Reiryoku in essence, so they shouldn't be able to do anything without me noticing"
"Also... You mentioned that you commanded the conquest of Hueco Mundo. Who were you commanding? I doubt that they were just grunts or lesser-Demons the ones who achieved such thing"
"Right. The higher Oni, known as the Princes of Jigoku, left me in charge of the 8 Dukes of Hell. They are very powerful Oni that have the ability to release their swords"
"Like Shinigami... Or more like, Hollows?" Orihime asked.
"That's where things get complicated. It turns out that the Oni don't use Zanpakutou, but whatever the name of weapon they have is, their release allows them to transform into their true Demon forms while keeping their blades. In vague but effective terms, it's like the powers of Shinigami and Hollow combined. Like having a Resurrección and a Bankai at the same time. Though you should keep in mind that they are entirely different in many aspects"
"Where are the 8 Dukes now?"
"I dispatched them to different palaces around Las Noches. I even forbid them of entering this palace without my permission"
"That means... You must be incredibly stronger than they are!" She felt relieved to think that.
"I don't know about that... I'd say their base forms match my first Resurrección, but I have no idea of how strong they get when they release their swords"
"That reminds me... Are you entirely...?"
"I am a pure Hollow, if that's what you were wondering"
"Why were your powers increased so much, then?"
"I don't know... Like I told you, the Oni didn't explain anything about my revival. Their king, Yama, simply gave me the position of Commander for this mission and, if I succeded, the authority to reign over Hueco Mundo as its king, though still subdued to Yama's absolute authority of course"
"What does the king of the Oni look like?"
"You're really curious about everything, aren't you?" Ulquiorra asked back due to her incessant questioning.
"Sorry..." She apologized with a saddened look.
"No, I was just pointing that out. I'm not bothered by this at all. Are all humans this curious?"
"I don't know if I could reply to that... I mean, some are, but some aren't. It's really difficult to speak of the whole human race as in general, though there are a couple things most people tend to share in common, no matter where they come from or what's their personality like"
"And what would those things be?" Ulquiorra inquired, really interested in her reply.
"I guess... Bonds. Things like friendship, family and... Love" She blushed a bit as she remembered her love for Ichigo.
"Could you explain to me... What is this love you speak of? I know I used the term back on your World... But to be honest, I've never really understood what it means" He confessed.
"Well... I think that depends on each person. Everyone feels and interprets love in different ways. For me, I think it would be... The happiness you feel when spending time with a person and the empathy you have with the other's feelings"
"Em-pa-thy?" He replied obliviously of what the term meant.
"It's the ability to feel what the other person feels. When you love someone, you can easily tell how they are feeling, but..." She stopped for a moment, immersed in her memories. "When you truly love someone, you can feel the exact same way as him... Or her!" She snapped in the end.
"Is that one of the powers of the heart?"
"Indeed. And I think it's one of the most difficult to grasp. You can, or at least, should always be connected to your own heart... But to feel empathy, you have to connect yours to the heart of the other person"
"What value is there in doing that though? For example, if someone was feeling sad or angry, there wouldn't be a benefit in me feeling the same" He replied confused.
"While that may be true, by feeling the same is that you can understand others in the best way possible. Because, maybe that person's grief is too much to hold alone, but if you help them carry it, you can both go through it together. Other times, it may be that the person is unable to find a solution to their problem, but by being in their shoes, you may be able to find an answer" She explained.
"Shoes?" He asked back, looking at his feet. "Are they that connected to the heart?!" He concluded astonished.
Orihime burst in laughter. "No, no! It's just an expression. To be in someone elses shoes, means to be able to feel the same as them, or at least understand what they are going through"
"I see..." He was a bit embarrassed.
"Though I have to admit, I never thought you'd make me laugh, Cifer-kun!" She even had tears of laughter in her eyes.
"But... you are crying..." He said a bit worried.
"Huh? Oh, these tears are not sad ones. Eyes tend to let tears out when an emotion is too strong. These are happy tears, which prove how much you made me laugh!"
"I... Made someone... Laugh..." He muttered in disbelief. "How did I do it?"
"This time it was accidental since it was a misunderstanding, though sometimes, misunderstandings can give the best laughs. There are people that learn the art of comedy and they create jokes to make others laugh on purpose"
"I wonder what's that like..."
"Well, if you had told me your real intentions before I would've been able to show you a collection of young comedians I had laying around" She pointed out.
"Sorry"
"Don't worry. I imagine that you didn't really have a choice. Though I would like to know more about your plan"
"About that... I'd rather not tell you. There's a possibility that everything is compromised if I reveal the plan to anybody"
"But how am I supposed to help you then?" She asked confused.
"By pretending you're just a prisoner in front of the Oni and not revealing any information. Just do as you're told while still showing some aversion towards their schemes and everything should work out"
"Okay..." She sighed. "Though Cifer-kun..."
"Hm?"
"Trust is also an important part in forming bonds. It means that you're willing to put your heart in the hands of others"
"My... Heart...?" He inspected the hole in his chest and then looked at his hand.
"I know that it might be too soon for you to do something like that... But I want you to know that you can trust me. As long as you're not up to something bad... I'm always willing to help you!"
"Trust..." He muttered. "I wonder what it feels like..." He thought.
His mind drifting was stopped by the opening of a small Kimon, right in front of the table.
A thin-looking humanoid being went through the Kimon. He had a black tunic covering his whole body and a bird-mask, similar to those of the doctors during the Black Plague, covering his face.
"Ulquiorra. The King demands your presence and the human's in the throne room, now" He said with an inexpressive voice. In fact, the tone kinda reminded Orihime of Ulquiorra.
"Understood, Kurokage. Let's go, woman" Ulquiorra went back to his cold expression with no effort.
"Y-Yes..." Orihime felt a bit saddened by this, since the moment they would ask for her powers was drawing closer.
They entered the Kimon to go into the depths of Hell.
~~~~X~~~~
The familiar sound of the alarm woke Ichigo up. Different to other days however, the first thing he felt was the sweet scent of Nelliel, who was opening her eyes as well.
Despite her hair being a mess in the morning, being so close to her, he felt that he had never seen a woman so beautiful before.
After a long yawn of hers that reminded Ichigo of a female lion waking up, she noticed how he was almost hipnotized while staring at her.
"Good morning, Ichi!" She happily greeted as she hugged him and gave him a quick kiss.
"Ah, good morning Nel... How did you sleep?"
"Like never before. No nightmares, no cold, no... Void, whatsoever" She felt as if all her troubles were gone.
"Really? I'm glad..." He caressed her hair gently.
"Oh... It must be a mess" She said, a bit bothered.
"Nah. It's just perfect" He replied with a smile to comfort her.
"Thank you..." She giggled and kissed him again.
"Well, it's time to start another day of training"
"Yes! I'll keep doing my best to master Shunkou"
"I can't wait to see that"
"I'll show you once I can control it well. For now, just focus on your objectives"
"Sure thing. Today I'll start my Kidou training with Hachi. I don't know if I'll be able to pull it off perfectly though..."
"Don't worry, Ichigo. Just do your best! Like you always do..." She playfully kissed him on the cheek and got out of the bag they shared the whole night.
"You're right. With you cheering for me, I feel like there's nothing I can't do!" He replied, all fired up.
"That's the way I feel every time you support me..." She thought as she looked at Ichigo in adoration.
Once on the table for breakfast, they acted the same way as always so Yoruichi would not bother them. They knew that sooner or later their relationship would be discovered, but they tried their best to keep it to themselves for as long as possible. Also, given the circumstances, they couldn't forget that they had to become stronger to fight the Oni. However, they knew they were mature enough to contain their desires and focus on the training for a whole day.
Nel went to train with Yoruichi and the other Espada as usual, while Ichigo joined Rukia and Hachi to learn Kidou.
"You took a while before coming here" She teased.
"Yeah. I had to get used to using my mask again, and then I had to learn the final Getsuga once again..." He replied as he thought: "White Zangetsu wasn't as bothersome as he was last time. Maybe because he knew that all I wanted was learning it for the training it meant, and not to use the Final Getsuga Tenshou itself"
"Very well, Ichigo. It's time to start you down the path of Kidou. For your style of combat, I don't think you're very interested in Bakudou or Kaidou, are you?" Hachigen asked.
"Not much, to be honest. Though I would like to know a couple of Bakudou spells that could come in handy"
"Very well. I'm thinking that techniques such as Dankuu would be what you're looking for, though you'll need lots of practice to achieve them"
"Yeah, I know"
"Now... What level of Hadou do you want to achieve?"
"As highest as I possibly can" He replied determined. "If you can get me to 99, it'd be perfect"
"You're being quite cocky considering you've never used Kidou before" Rukia pointed out.
"Maybe I am... But I want to get as stronger as I possibly can if I want to fight those Demons. Can you do it, Hachi?"
Hachigen scratched the back of his head, a bit insecure. "You know it takes decades to master Kidou, Ichigo. Maybe you are talented, but even so, what you're asking me is teaching you techniques that are even forbidden because of their destructive power. I imagine you know the risks already"
"If you're worried about those dumbasses of Central 46, I couldn't care less. There is a chance that there won't be a Soul Society if the Oni are not defeated. This is something worth the risk" He concluded.
"As long as you understand the consequences, I'm willing to help you" Hachigen said in reply.
"Let's start with the basics then" Ichigo accepted.
And thus, started the second year of training, year in which everyone consolidated their new powers.
After achieving the state of meditation with his Zanpakutou, Renji achieved the true form of his final power as a Shinigami:
"Bankai: So-Oh Zabimaru!"
Uryuu and Chad seemed to increase their power a bit more, though none of them really showed new abilities. Both had been secretely developing new techniques though.
Pesche and Dondochakka mastered their Cero Sincrético and increased the power of their unique abilities. Although it seems like they reached the top of their strength, they still had one more objective on their minds...
"Scavenge..."
"Keep your ground..."
The Vizards kept working on their masked forms. Although they had reached an end in their abilities, they decided to try to shorten the border between Shinigami and Hollows a bit more.
Rukia had also been meditating and practicing with her Zanpakutou after training her Kidou every day. She had already become an expert in the three forms of it, so the only thing left to do was...
"Bankai..."
Youruichi and Nelliel continued training with Shunkou, going as far as teaching the Arrancar the advanced ability of Hanki. In addition to that, since Yoruichi was also known as the Goddess of Shunpou, she decided to develop Nel's Sonido to a new level.
"Is that as fast as you can go?" She teased with a grin as the Arrancar made an effort to go even faster.
Ichigo and Hachigen had trained to the point where they could face each other in a duel of Kidou. Hachi's barriers were a real pain in the ass for Ichigo, but his destructive abilities had become astonishingly poweful as well.
"Hadou 91: Senju Kouten Taihou!" The orange-haired Shinigami attacked with an array of pink destructive lights.
Finally, Grimmjow and Harribel continued improving the powers of their Resurrección through the year, but aside from creating a couple tag-team strategies, they hadn't accomplished a new form. Until...
Harribel woke in the middle of the night. She had had a dream with her Fracción.
"I wonder how they are doing... They must be worried about me" She thought. "Though it has been a little more than 2 years for me, it has only been a couple hours outside. It's gonna be a strange reunion for sure..." She said to herself as she imagined her hugging her Fracción desperately, when for them it was only gonna be a couple days. "I have to keep my composure when that happens... Huh?"
She noticed that she was all alone in the tent.
"Where is Grimmjow? I could swear I felt his presence all this time"
Then, once again she felt a faint presence of the 6th Espada.
"It's like a part of his Reiatsu is suddenly flowing with strength..." She thought as she decided to exit the tent.
She looked at the vastness of the Dangai. It was always dark, but during the day, there were lights to illuminate the place better.
Now, the only light she could see was a very small blue light in the distance. It shined as powerful as a star, but it faded sometimes.
"Could that be...?"
She went towards the light. She didn't know how much she walked, but it felt like she never ended. She decided to run towards it and even use Sonido in between, until the light was just a couple hundreds of meters away.
Grimmjow was laying face up with his eyes closed, concentrated on charging his Reiatsu, which emanated from his body like a giant blue flame. As he did so, he entered his subconscious.
A giant black panther with electric blue stripes was growling inside of his inner world, which looked like a distorted version of Hueco Mundo's desert.
"Today is the day... That I'll finally beat you, and make all that power mine!" Grimmjow growled at it.
"Try all you want. You cannot defeat me. I am you, at your very core"
"That's one more reason for me to wanna beat you. You see, I cannot live with the fact that the good for nothing Ulquiorra beat his Inner Beast while I couldn't!"
"Well then, I'll face you once more. I'll do it as many times as you wish, until you give up"
"Then that makes us two. Haaaa!"
Grimmjow fought the creature with all he had. Slashes, Cero, Desgarrón... He left nothing out of his arsenal to face his inner beast.
The black and blue panther did not give up though, and it only seemed to get stronger and stronger to counter Grimmjow's attacks.
The Espada's theory was that he had to eat his beast, just like he had eaten thousands of other Hollows in the past. If he managed to eat his Inner Beast, Pantera, he would achieve his Segunda Etapa.
But, was that theory correct?
The Panther fired a giant blue Cero from its mouth at Grimmjow, which he countered with a Gran Rey Cero of his own.
"Heh! Did you enjoy that? Well, I'm telling you... I'm just warming up!" He lied.
"Nice try, but I know all about you. How you love to talk big when in fact, everyone's stronger than you. Harribel, Nelliel, Ulquiorra... Ichigo"
"Shut up! I know I can beat them, I am the strongest! I'll be king of Hueco Mundo!" He jumped with his claws pointed straight at the panther's face.
"Fool..." Pantera muttered as he opened his mouth to devour Grimmjow first.
"What the-?" The Espada had been eaten by the beast.
An immense darkness enclosed him.
"Wh-Where am I?" He asked.
"I think the question should be, who are you?" A distorted voice said back.
"Huh? Why the fuck would I ask that? I know who I am. I'm Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, the strongest Hollow to ever exist!"
"Yes... You are in fact confused about who you truly are"
"Stop with the fucking riddles! You're giving me a headache... Go straight to the point"
"What is your essence. Your aspect of death?"
"Destruction. I perfectly know that"
"Perfect. But do you know, what destruction is? What causes destruction?"
"Power. Overwhelming power causes destruction"
"Wrong"
"Huh?!"
"Why do you destroy Grimmjow?"
"To get stronger"
"Wrong again"
"Tch... What is this game?"
"All I want is for you to be honest with yourself"
"If you put it like that... I guess, I destroy because I want others to see my strength. I want others... To fear me, because of my great power"
"That's more like it. But why do you look for fear? Why wouldn't you look for respect instead?"
"I... I don't know" He admitted.
"I'll tell you why. Only those who are truly powerful can earn respect. The truth is, you are afraid Grimmjow"
"I... Am afraid?"
"Exactly. You're always afraid. Afraid to be beaten, afraid to be humble, afraid to be labeled... Weak"
"Hmph... Prove it"
"There is nothing to prove Grimmjow. Only to accept"
"What? Are you saying that I have to admit defeat and say I was afraid to gain power? Bullshit!"
"It's your choice, Grimmjow. Try to give it a little thought"
"*sigh* I mean... I want to be strong. Stronger than everyone. I hate weakness because... It means you are unable to do something. If there is something I'm afraid of, it is that"
As he admitted that, a blue light started shining a bit from his stripes.
"What is...?"
"Accept all your fears, Grimmjow. For it is fear that feeds destruction. People destroy what they fear. That is the truth behind your power" The voice revealed.
"So it is true after all..." He muttered a bit disappointed. "Fuck it... Yeah, I'm afraid of being called weak. I'm afraid of not becoming king of Hueco Mundo. I'm afraid of not achieving the same strength Ichigo or Ulquiorra have obtained. And I'm afraid... Of losing my fellow Hollows, especially... Her, so... So what?! I might be afraid, but that doesn't change the fact that I want to do something more, I wanna be strong and I'm gonna destroy any barrier that wants to stop me, even fear itself!" He declared as determined as he could be.
Suddenly, the darkness started disappearing, shattering in pieces as his own aura devoured the space that contained him.
"This... This power... This strength...! IT'S MINE!" He growled.
Back in the Dangai, his eyes suddenly opened and with them a large explosion of electric blue energy filled the place.
"No way...!" Harribel muttered in disbelief as she witnessed the event.
After the energy faded, she saw Grimmjow in a form completely different from before.
His legs and arms were black and had shining blue stripes. His claws were longer and sharper, both on his hands and feet. His torso was uncovered, but it looked more muscular. His tail had become a bit longer and was striped black and blue as well.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" He laughed as he tasted his new power. "I did it! This is my true power!" He shouted to the World and then put his both hands together to fire...
"Cero Eléctrico!"
A giant blue Cero embedded with electricity was shot into the distance at light-speed nonetheless. A couple seconds after he fired the beam, a thunder was heard.
"I can't wait to try that in battle!" He said to himself, eager to fight whoever got in front of him. Whoever but...
"G-Grimmjow? Is that you?" Harribel asked him in an insecure way, which was very strange of her.
His pointy ears reacted to the sound of her voice immediately. "Huh?" He wasn't expecting anyone, so it was a real surprise. "W-What are you doing here?"
"I woke up in the middle of the night and... It made me curious not finding you there, so I looked for you. Is that...? Segunda Etapa?"
"Yeah, I think so. I've never felt this strong ever before"
"How did you do it?"
"I... I've been coming here every night to train since Ichigo revealed that Ulquiorra had obtained this power. I don't know how, but somehow, I was able to enter my subconscious at some point. There, I found a creature that called itself my Inner Beast. His name, was Pantera, just like my Resurrección. I fought the creature many times and I lost all those times..." He said disappointed. "But it seems... That I never had to win. Instead, I had to find myself, or somethin'! I don't know... It's hard to explain, and I can't remember everything, but I think it has something to do with our aspect of death"
She looked at him with amazement as he revealed this information.
"Wow... I never thought you were so hard-working, Grimmjow" She admitted.
"It's not like that... I just, wanted to get stronger, and here I am" He replied with a strange modesty.
"Would you mind... Teaching me?" She couldn't make eye contact as she asked this.
"S-Sure" He replied, startled by her request. "I can't say that I'm not surprised to see you asking me for help though"
"Well, who else am I gonna ask? It's not like there's anyone other than you who achieved Segunda Etapa"
"Of course... It's for that..." He sounded a bit disappointed.
"But I think..."
"Hm?"
"...Even if someone else knew, it wouldn't be the same if it wasn't you. After all... We've been through a lot of things together since the invasion. You're even the first person I ever asked to call me by my name so..."
"Tier..." He blushed as she confessed that to him.
Indeed, during the last 2 years of training, they grew quite close to each other. What started as mere basic interaction, developed slowly but strongly into a reciprocate friendship. Although none of the two realised this, they had established an unbreakable bond.
"I want you to help me, Grimmjow" She concluded.
"No problem. We can start after the usual training with that woman" He said referring to Yoruichi.
"Thank you" She blushed a bit, though her mask made it difficult to see.
"Don't mention it. Like you said..." He transformed back into his normal form. "We're long-time aquaintances now" He walked towards her. "Let's go. We might still have a couple hours to rest before training"
"Y-Yeah" She followed him. "What's wrong with me? Since when am I so insecure... So shy... So... Girlish?" She thought to herself. "This is their fault. Seeing them in my dreams has made me more like them" She concluded thinking about her Fracción.
~~~~X~~~~
The next day, after a normal routine of training.
"Hey, Yoruichi-san" Nelliel asked her.
"What is it?"
"I'm really happy with everything you've taught me. I've learned a lot and I've never felt as powerful as I am right now"
"But?" She knew there was something more.
"The thing is... I know I'm nowhere near as powerful as Ichigo is. I'm beginning to think, that I might be a nuissance to him in the battlefield. So I... I want to learn something more to help him"
"Really? And what would that be?" She knew where it was going but wanted to hear it come from her mouth.
"I'd like to learn Kaidou. Hachi-san mentioned it, but he said that he wasn't really proficient in it. But that's why I'm asking you, Yoruichi-san. I know you've healed Ichigo before, and you're amazing in everything that you do, really, so I decided... That if anything were to happen to Ichi, I want to be able to heal him!" She said determined.
"I see... Excellent. I'll make sure you can heal your beloved Ichi as many times as he needs then. He tends to get damaged easily, you know?" She teased.
"Eh...?" She muttered confused. "Did I call him that in front of her?" She thought as Yoruichi walked away.
"Let's start off now. Come here!" She indicated with her hand.
They went to see the Vizards, who had finished training harshly in another area of the Dangai.
They were all full of bruises and scratches.
"What happened to them?" Nel asked worried.
"That's what happens when you fight a Vizard gone berzerk" Yoruichi explained as she went to heal Lisa and Hiyori.
"We're still far from controlling it completely" Lisa told her friend.
"Yeah... But we gotta keep trying. We can't... Give up... Just now..." She replied between breaths.
"A rough day, huh?" Yoruichi asked.
"Totally. Training with Ichigo was a piece of cake compared to this..." Hiyori replied.
"I can imagine it is. Lay down, I'll do my best. Nel!" She called her.
"Yes?"
"Come here. I'll teach you all I can with the time we have"
"Understood"
Ichigo was finishing training with Hachigen as well.
"How was it today?" He asked his master in Kidou.
"Very good, Ichigo. You did in fact have natural talent for this. I wish I could teach you more than just the incantation of the highest level spells, but you should do well with that once in Hueco Mundo"
"Yeah... I hope so. Thanks for all your help, Hachi"
"You're welcome, Ichigo. You're free to continue training with me if you want. We still have a couple months"
"Really? But I don't know if I want to fill my head with more incantations than the ones I alredy learned..."
"If not, we can continue dueling with what you know. In any case, to not endanger ourselves, the best we can do is not using the incantations, since these make the spells more powerful"
"That's true. We can keep doing that then! See you tomorrow" Ichigo replied as he went to grab something to eat.
That night, Ichigo and Nel were sleeping together like they had done the past year, when they heard a thunder.
"Huh? What the hell?" He muttered confused.
"I think I heard one of those last night as well" Nelliel remembered. "I thought it was my imagination so I let it slide"
"Maybe we should check it out"
"Yes, I'm curious about it. Let's go, Ichi" She replied and kissed him.
"Yeah..." He smiled and blushed. "Let's go"
Just like the night before, despite the darkness of the Dangai, there was a distant light. Two to be exact. A blue shine and a yellow one.
"Could it be?" Ichigo wondered.
"I think yes. It is them" Nel confirmed. She had trained long enough with the two to perfectly recognize their Reiatsu, for little as it was expressing itself due to the great distance.
"And this pressure... Oh, Grimmjow you bastard" He grinned as he realised he had unlocked Segunda Etapa.
"He must be helping Harribel to achieve it" Nel deduced.
"It's a pity that thing doesn't allow you to go further than Resurrección for a couple minutes" Ichigo told her, referring to her armband.
"Don't worry. I'll train to the maximum when the time is right" She smiled determined.
"Ha, like you haven't trained to the max now. I've seen you fight, Nel. Even in your base form, you are brutally strong"
"You really think that?"
"Not only that, but, even if you don't like fighting... You are on another level of beauty when you do so" He complimented.
"You're lying!" She chuckled in disbelief.
"Not at all. You have a unique style. So technical, but at the same time... So free. Watching you fight is like seeing an antelope in the wild" He said as he looked drectly into her eyes.
"Oh, how I love you..." She replied and kissed him passionately. "If you really think that... I'll fight as many times as you wish, Ichigo" She whispered in his ear.
With all the fooling around, they had forgotten about the reason they got up, but a bright yellow shine reminded them.
"Oh, let's go!" Ichigo remembered.
"Right!" She agreed.
Ichigo was tremendously fast with his new powers. In fact, during his training, he lowered his Reiatsu a lot to not harm anyone. He remembered how even Aizen was unable to feel his Reiatsu at some point, due to the abysmal difference in power.
Nel, on her part, had started developing a technique to go faster than Sonido. This was still a work in progress however, so she decided to leave it for another time.
As fast as they could, they arrived at the origin of the light. Grimmjow was now in his normal state, which was expected since there was no blue shine. On the other hand, Harribel was unconscious in her Resurrección, but was emanating a bright yellow Reiatsu that showed she was alright.
"She did it..." The 6th Espada said triumphantly. "I knew that showing her the transformation would help her. She has a lot of focus as well, so it's no wonder that she had no further trouble descending into that state" He thought as he looked at her body.
Harribel was now in her inner World. Just like Grimmjow's, it was the desert of Hueco Mundo, but covered by an infinite ocean.
"So this is what my inner world is like..." She said to herself.
"Finally. I thought we'd never meet" A male voice was heard. "Why don't you come down here?"
Harribel submerged herself into the water and swam towards the voice.
A giant black shark with yellow stripes running down his fins, tail and face.
"Are you... Tiburón?"
"You catch on quickly. But I guess that's thanks to the help of your new friend..." He pointed out.
"It's somehow ironic that my Inner Beast is a male if you ask me" She rolled her eyes.
The shark chuckled and showed his thousands of teeth. "Sorry to disappoint you, but yes, this is me"
"Whatever... Let's go straight to the point. What do I have to do?"
"Look below you"
She did as the beast told her and looked. Three chains were running from what seemed to be the bottom of the sea, each one tied to one of her Fracción. They looked dead, but were unconscious. Nevertheless it was a displeasing sight.
"Let me guess. I have to choose wether I sacrifice them or myself?"
"Easy, isn't it?" Tiburón asked back.
"After everything we've gone through, I know that they have always been ready to die for me. No need to remember that this is all just an illusion... Even if it was real, they wouldn't be happy unless they made their sacrifice"
"Is that so? Well, I must say that I am really proud to have you as my master so far, but I'm afraid that I forgot one person deeper in this ocean of apathy"
After he said that, a shadow rose from the depths of the water. She immediately recognized his blue hair and manly, yet handsome face. It was none other than Grimmjow, tied to the last chain.
"Why him?!" She thought with a mixture of anger and worry. "What is the meaning of this?" She asked to the creature.
"I don't know, you tell me" Tiburón replied. "What do you say? Will you sacrifice him as well? Are you willing to sacrifice all those who are dear to you? Even the one you...?"
"Shut up!" She lost her patience and attacked the shark with La Gota. "I'm tired of having you play with my emotions. This might be a challenge... But you've gone too far!"
She clashed against her inner beast furiously in an intent to obtain the power by force. She knew deep inside her that she wasn't willing to sacrifice any of the people she saw there. In fact, she was the one willing to die for them. How could she ever make such a choice in the real world?
"How ironic indeed, that a man was all it took to break that will of steel... Goodbye, my master" Tiburón ooened his mouth and devoured her.
"No...! I... I lost!" She said in defeat.
The absolute darkness swallowed her whole, and then... It spoke:
"Why do you think you lost the battle?"
"Huh? I guess... It was my lack of self-control"
"You're lying"
"What?" She was sure that was the answer.
"You always seek to become some kind of perfect being. For your Fracción, a perfect savior. For Aizen, a perfect warrior. For Hueco Mundo, a perfect Queen. For Grimmjow... A perfect woman, maybe"
"So what are you trying to get at here? What is the point of asking me this?"
"That you get to know yourself. This power you're trying to obtain, resides in all Arrancar. However, only those that truly know themselves are able to unlock it. That is, because knowing yourself is the only way to understand the root behind your aspect of death"
"The root... Of sacrifice?"
"Indeed. Why did you fight, for example?"
"To survive, to protect... To pay back a debt"
"Can you see that in your mind there is always something greater than yourself as a reason to fight?"
"Yes. Although I think I never really thought about it myself"
"What do you think is the root of sacrifice then? Or even... Why would you make a sacrifice?"
"To protect. We make sacrifices to protect something dear to us. We even sacrifice other things, other people, just so we can save something else we believe has more value..." Her body started shining with a yellow bright.
"And what do you want to protect?"
"My... friends" An image of everyone at the Dangai appeared.
"My... family" Her three Fracción were happily greeting her in her mind.
"G... Grimmjow" She confessed as a barrage of images of him flashed before her eyes. Ten thousand feet below the sea, as she sank into the abyss, the thought of him began.
That was the final word. With that, an enormous heat surrounded her. It was a scorching flame, possibly as blazing as the fire that burned her Fracción to a crisp back in Karakura. The burning desire to protect was what drove her sacrifice.
She opened her eyes again, and a yellow explosion of flames gave birth to her Resurrección: Segunda Etapa.
"Look, Ichigo!" Nel told him.
"Damn..." He replied, amused.
Grimmjow laughed as he witnessed the scene. "Heh... Well done, Tier"
After the flames ceased, her new form was revealed.
Her appearance was still quite revealing, having a pair of thin black fins covering the center of her breasts and a short black skirt made by a circle of shark-teeth was covering her rear. Her shoulders were covered by pointy black fins and, on her back, a black tail with yellow stripes that resembled a whale shark had grown. Her golden hair looked wilder and longer as it fell on the sides of the tail. Going down, her feet were covered by black boots with pointy shark teeth on the sides. Finally, her giant sword had become black with two yellow stripes and had a curve on top, with a cannon-like shape.
"Segunda Etapa..." She muttered to herself, and then pointed her new blade at the empty side of the Dangai. "Cero Volcánico!" She blasted a yellow Cero that exploded with the same strength of an underwater volcano and burned everything on its path.
As she witnessed her new power, her serious expression changed to a content grin.
"Having a good time?" Grimmjow asked her with a chuckle.
"I think so. Thank you, Grimmjow. I don't know how much time I'd have taken without your help" She said with her typical polite tone.
"I was just doing my job. The Queen of Hueco Mundo has to be powerful enough to beat some Demons, am I right?" He asked back.
However, Harribel didn't think that was enough, so she jumped to his side and turned back into her normal self.
Grimmjow was confused by her sudden action, but wasn't able to react before she embraced him.
"No, seriously, thanks" She whispered tenderly. Her mask didn't allow him to see it, but she was smiling as she held the other Espada in her arms.
Grimmjow could only blush as he muttered her name.
"T-Tier..."
On the other side of the field, Nel and Ichigo were in shock as well.
"No way... Harribel is..." Ichigo muttered.
"Hugging Grimmjow" Nel completed. "Do you think they?!"
"I think we should go" He replied.
"Yeah... I think the same" A side of her wanted to stay and see the end of the scene with her own eyes, but the voice of reason said it was wrong.
The two quietly disappeared into the shadows of the Dangai and left the pair of Espada alone.
"Grimmjow" She said after breaking the embrace.
"Yeah?" He still felt a bit awkward.
"Will you help me train this new power to get back our home?"
He stared deeply into her green eyes before replying.
"As long as you give me the right to challenge you for the throne..." He grinned. "Take it for granted"
She felt something inside her beating. She didn't know what it was, but it was really strong. Along with that, an urge to hug him again and taste his lips appeared as well.
"For real. What is wrong with me?" She thought as she deviated her mind from that crazy idea and looked another way. "Let's go. Tomorrow will be a long day"
"Surely. We'll make those Demons regret they ever entered Hueco Mundo" Grimmjow agreed.
~~~~X~~~~
And one last chapter before my exams begin. Tomorrow I have Algebra and due to my inspiration... Let's just say I didn't study much.
Anyways, this was a more history oriented chapter with a lot of symbolism and epiphanies of what's to come. Also, this is the very beginning of Harrijow as one of the canon ships in this fic, though due to their personality, I doubt we'll see much for a while, but we'll get there eventually.
I also imagine you liked the Segunda Etapa I made for them. If not... Well, shit, but I hope that's not the case, haha.
Also, in case there remain any doubts about it... No, Ichigo and Nel haven't had sex. That part is being saved for faaaar later in the fic, because I have thought of giving a special value to such an event.
Reviews:
Antex-The Legendary Zoroark: Wow! Good chapter! I enjoyed it! Keep up the grand work! This little chapter was really emotional. It truly was an adorable one in my opinion.
But yea. So wow! Looks like Nel has learned Shunko, and Halibel has awoken to tell them a bit of what she witnessed between her and Ulquiorra. Fascinating! I also find it a little ironic that Halibel calls Neliel, Nel-sama. What would her Fraccioné think of that if they saw their Halibel-sama saying something similar to what they say to her predecessor? Lol. That'd make for a good laugh.
I'm also glad that Ichigo and Nel have confirmed their feelings for one another. So sweet! And since you said you're not doing Lemons (which I'm okay with), I was wondering... what is the difference between Limes and Lemons anyway? At least to you? Just wondering.See ya next update!
Reply: Glad to hear you enjoyed it. I was also thinking of a funny scene involving Nel, Harribel and her Fracción, though it will be a while before that.
Now, to the more... Acid part of this review. For me, Lemons are plain sex scenes with lots of descriptions about what the characters do physically, but that tend to forget the emotional factor. Limes, on the other hand, are more feeling-oriented scenes with more kisses, cuddles and stuff (also fooling around, etc). That's what I understand by limes anyway, but I hope you get the idea. I do understand that not all Lemons fall into PWP (Porn without plot) but most do in this very... Special community. I'll go deeper into this topic in the next reply of our green lettuce friend here.
TheHiddenLettuce: "I don't write lemons"
personally I think its sometimes better to let the reader use their imagination when it comes to lemons.looking forward to the next chapter of this.
Reply: As I mentioned before, it's not like I won't describe sex scenes, it's just that I prefer not being so graphic in those, but that's just something of my own personal taste. However, like I said before, my big problem with Lemons is not the sex, it is the way writers distort the characters to fit wild sex scenes that just... Wouldn't occur if the author took the actual personality of the characters into consideration. That said, I do describe a more detailed way of sex, but I use more vague language, use a lot of metaphors, etc.
Love is beautiful. Tainting lovely couples with PWP on the other hand, is simply sick and stupid.
I'll do my best to write regardless of exams, but I don't know how that'll go. See you all next chapter! Evhron.
Glossary:
Cero Eléctrico: Electric Cero. I remembered that there is a "Lanza del Relámpago", so I changed it.
Cero Volcánico: Volcanic Cero. Different from Edrad's Volcánica.